Jefferson in Fog

It was quite a foggy start to the day obscuring at times any view of the Jefferson Memorial from across the lake. Made for a nice ethereal shot without a messy background interfering with the view. By mid-day, it was blue sky and beautiful but the views were of tourist wandering everywhere you looked.

Jefferson Memorial

I caught a trip to Washington DC at the peak of the beautiful Cherry Blossoms season but unfortunately it is a bit of a weak bloom as a cold snap after a warm start to an early spring killed a lot of the buds. Still, beautiful to see all the pink blossoms around Washington. Had to get this classic shot and now I want to come back again to catch a peak bloom in all its glory.

Bryce: Queen's Amphitheater

The queen herself, at least it looks like a young Queen Victoria, presides over the bottom of the canyon in an area called, the "Queen's Amphitheater". Excellent view of the rain and erosion making a piece of art out of the natural landscape.

Bryce Natural Bridge

An easy way to spend half a day in Bryce Canyon is to take the scenic 18 mile drive to about 9,000 feet and then drive on down making 8-10 stops at scenic turnoffs along the way back down. Each stop is spectacular and gives uniquely different views. This obviously is an arch, although they call this stop a Natural Bridge. I suppose it is both.

Bryce Chess Pieces

These Bryce Canyon Hoodoo's look like complicated chess pieces up close. What is also strange is how similar each is to the ones standing next door. It is like nature put everything on a copier machine and it got stuck on repeat. Beautiful and strange sight up close.

Desert View Watchtower at the Grand Canyon

The Desert Watchtower at the Grand Canyon is a spectacular sight but I don't think it gives any better view of the area as compared to just standing near the edge of the canyon. Still, pretty cool piece of architecture.

Bryce Sunset at Inspiration Point

Beautiful view made even more amazing is that the flat top in the distance 35 miles away was once connected to the plateau we were standing on at Inspiration Point in Bryce National Park. The intervening land came as the basin as a whole rose up and was elevated by shifting plates. Subsequent erosion created the famous Hoodoo's in the foreground with the freeze/thaw cycle spiting the rocks vertically. Just amazing.